Lakers Coach Frank Vogel Has Eye-Opening Details on JR Smith Acquisition

Los Angeles Lakers head coach Frank Vogel will work with JR Smith during the season resumption. He shared his take on the new deal and Smith’s deal with the team. Smith was one of the key contributors of LeBron James. They have had a great connection, and this will help them win more games.

Vogel had a really tough job this season and yes, he did a really good job with the Lakers. Smith can bring so much to the table, and Vogel is excited about that.

“The experience factor,” Vogel said about the veteran. “This guy’s a big-time player, he’s proven it over the course of his career. We know he can help us. We almost added him earlier in the year when we added Dion Waiters, and now we have the luxury of having both. We’re not going to ask him to come in and be Avery Bradley, he’s going to come in and be JR Smith.”

Frank Vogel likes JR Smith

Smith has enough experience and he has also won a title. Maybe he will win another title. He will replace Avery Bradley. When it comes to Bradley, he was one of the best defenders and three-point shooters. Well, Vogel believes that his team has a lot of backup options for the season remainder.

“Avery’s loss is obviously a huge loss for us, but we’re a next-man-up team,” Vogel said. “Alex is an elite defender in his own right in a different way than Avery, as is KCP. Offensively, clearly we wouldn’t run plays that Avery uses for Alex, we’d run plays that put Alex in the best position to succeed.”

Vogel has to adjust the winning formula. Maybe Alex Caruso and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope will get the starting job instead of Bradley.

The Lakers haven’t played in a really long time. But they have so much talent.

“We do have a different type of perspective from some teams that are playing for their playoff lives, but it doesn’t mean we’re not going to go out and – like we always would if these were the last eight games of the regular season – we would compete to win,” Vogel said. “That’s how your habits are built the best … Does that mean we’re going to play certain guys 47 minutes? Obviously no.

“We’ll be intelligent with the whole process of trying to find the right pace to bring our group along from a conditioning standpoint and evaluating on a daily basis what we feel they can handle and what they’re ready for without compromising their bodies and putting them at risk to injury. We will be cautious with those eight games, but we will compete to win.”